Hiding the Forensics
Is it obvious that prosecutors cannot hide evidence of a defendant’s innocence? Can an entire prosecutor’s office fail to take that obligation seriously? What if that happens and an innocent man spends 18 years in prison and is nearly executed – could the office then be held responsible? What if they buried a forensic lab report that would have provided scientific evidence of innocence?
The Supreme Court addressed those questions in its ruling this week in Connick v. Thompson. John Thompson spent 18 years in prison and came within weeks of execution for a murder he did not commit. Prosecutors had concealed a key lab report with a blood test from the victim’s clothing, which the culprit had bled on, as well a series of other items including eyewitness statements describing an attacker who did not at all resemble Thompson.